Real-time structured light depth extraction
Kurtis Keller, Jeremy D. Ackerman · Proceedings of SPIE, the International Society for Optical Engineering/Proceedings of SPIE · 2000
Gathering depth data using structured light has been a procedure for many different environments and uses. Many of these system are utilized instead of laser line scanning because of their quickness. However, to utilize depth extraction for some applications, in our case laparoscopic surgery, the depth extraction must be in real time. We have developed an apparatus that speeds up the raw image display and grabbing in structured light depth extraction from 30 frames per second to 60 and 180 frames per second. This results in an updated depth and texture map of about 15 times per second versus about 3. This increased update rate allows for real time depth extraction for use in augmented medical/surgical applications. Our miniature, fist-sized projector utilizes an internal ferro-reflective LCD display that is illuminated with cold light from a flex light pipe. The miniature projector, attachable to a laparoscope, displays inverted pairs of structured light into the body where these images are then viewed by a high-speed camera set slightly off axis from the projector that grabs images synchronously. The images from the camera are ported to a graphics-processing card where six frames are worked on simultaneously to extract depth and create mapped textures from these images. This information is then sent to the host computer with 3D coordinate information of the projector/camera and the associated textures. The surgeon is then able to view body images in real time from different locations without physically moving the laparoscope imager/projector, thereby, reducing the trauma of moving laparoscopes in the patient.